Just got back from visiting my Dad in Oklahoma.



Other then the nice greeting from Barbra, the visit was good. It went by very fast and I wish I had done a lot more then I did. The first day in town I went with my dad to put in some bids for his Rock company. When we were finished there, we stopped by the Preacher's Ranch and I got to meet him and talk to him about Uncle Charlie. Then, we stopped by the Lake house and I was able to see the devastating remains of what was lost in the fire. It was very sad. I think it was a really good day for my dad though because he was able to find closure on Charlie's death.














This is Dad burring Charlie's dog, Baby. We found him in the back of the house on the bed next to the window.

We did find out that the cause of the fire was because of a propane gas leak, between the wall, on the back side of the house. The leak had caused the wall to fill up with the gas and Charlie most likely was standing next to it when the fire ignited. It is believed that he was killed instantly.

A neighbor was outside when she noticed smoke coming from the trailer. She saw both vehicles were there and knew Charlie was home. She ran over and smashed all the windows out of the front of the house hoping to help him escape, but he did not answer her and she didn't dare go in. She said the house was completely destroyed in less then 5 minutes.





Not much left. Is there?


Dad said he is going to take the rock over to his house and build a sidewalk by his pool. I guess he is going to scrap as much metal as possible too. Not sure what is going to happen to the land. Probably nothing for now. It is still in Trust from Grandpa so I'm not sure anyone really knows. I've heard talk about it going to AireAnna. That makes the most since to me.




This is a top view. There is absolutely NOTHING left.
I cleaned out Charlie's truck and found a ton of important documents though. What was he thinking to keep all the property deeds, car titles to both cars, and a few other important documents in the glove box? I found them tucked in the back of his owner's manual. Hmm. Why there?
I also found his extra set of keys... hanging inside the door of his gas tank. It came in very handy to have them because Barbra sure did accidentally pick the originals up and take them to work with her. She called and told dad once she got to work because she didn't want me to drive it. She also said that the insurance company called her when they "heard" what had happened because she was listed as next of kin. Whatever! Evidently they needed to let her know that only her and dad were authorized to drive the vehicle. Have you ever heard of such craziness? She was pretty upset when she saw we had moved the truck (spare keys, remember?) and then I was sure to mention I had called my own insurance company and got permission to drive it. She was pretty upset that she didn't get her way. UGGH! She is so selfish and greedy.

With it being as late as it is, I am going to go ahead and publish this post. I will add more to it or just start another post in the near future. My Easter post should be up in a few days as well.

COOPER

I have been putting off this post since Wednesday because I can't figure out how get my pictures to the desk top from the camera.

We have a new dog in our family! His name is Cooper and until our vet check today, we thought he was some hound mix mutt.

About a month ago I talked to Andy about getting a dog. An older dog, because I'm not so sure I have the energy or desire, for a puppy. I just wanted to have a dog that wanted to be lazy, and love us. For a while there I thought I was going to have to check the weekly obituaries in hopes of finding a recently orphaned one.

Well, I found Cooper, formerly called Buddy but officially named Andy. Funny, isn't it? I didn't know the shelter had named him Andy until after I had dicided to consider him. When I called Andy and told him about the perfect dog he seemed sceptical that I could find a perfect one in such a short time. Maybe he thought I was settling, or something? Then I told him I knew it was the one because of his name.

Two weeks later I took Madeline to see this dog. They took to each other really well and Madeline, although reserved, was very excited that we might bring him home.

About another week and Andy called to tell me he thought I should go and get the dog. He wanted us to have him.

We went that day and instead of turning in the paperwork and planning on another visit, the dog somehow ended up in our car and was officially ours. We call him Cooper.

He is such a good boy. I have yet to hear him bark. No messes when I leave him home alone in the house and I even leave the garbage can in the kitchen. I called my mom and told her he was so good I thought maybe he might be sick. He sleeps the whole night on a rug next to Madeline's bed, lets her walk him without a fight and is really sweet.

Okay, so I took him for his first vet check today because I noticed he wasn't feeling good on Saturday. He wouldn't eat, he could barely get up the stairs and he caughed so hard I thought he had asthma.

At the vet, I found out that he has bronchitis. I also found out that he is a pure bread American walker foxhound. Who knew? I thought he was a beagle mix. Kinda weird to see a 64lb beagle. Hey, anything can happen whith dogs these days. He sure has the face and markings of one though.

So, now I have a dog that can run for hours without tiring. (Running buddy?) The internet said they were originally bred for running with horses while hunting.

Cooper definately belonged to someone who spent time working with him. He is about 5 years old. He must have wondered off on a scent during hunting season and his owner couldn't find him. Lucky us!

I hope to have pictures up soon. If you can't wait, just google "foxhound" and they should have a good picture there. Cooper is tricolored.

Is spell check working these days? It said I spelt everything correctly the first time through. hmmh.

This is for you, Uncle Charlie

I missed you before I got the call. When dad called me on Tuesday night and blurted the news that you were gone all I could think of was how thankful I was for the past few months between us. We had such a good time just talking about "stuff". Sometimes we would talk for so long that I wanted to keep it a secret from dad because I didn't want to hurt his feelings. I just had so much fun. Even through my tears as I write, I am able to spontaneously laugh about how hard we laughed a few weeks ago about *******. Silly, I know, but it was so incredibly funny.

Contrary to what some may have thought of you, I think you were an incredible man. I wish everyone knew the side of you that I did. You had incredible strength inside of you, both physically and mentally. Hey, not everyone gets to brag about the fact that their blood has the strength of an Olympic swimmer or the intelligence to speak 3 languages fluently. Didn't you swim next to Mark Spitz in the 70's? Actually, I know you did. What a privilege it must have been. Your knowledge of history is somehow more impressive then the BS you have in physics, but your ability to read others was a talent greater then your strength and knowledge combined.

You are my blood. You understood me. I was just telling you the other night how hard it is for me to no not self sabotage my efforts when I get so close to finishing something. I was being so hard on myself and you put me back into reality. You told me how important it is to not let my intelligence scare me. (Intelligence? what?). You actually know I know better. I am smart and I will finish school. It was encouraging to hear that I'm not alone on being scared of myself though. Oh how I wish you had understood yourself more before you got into so much trouble.

You always got me because we are so much alike. Rebels by nature and obsequious almost to a fault. You said you mother was that way too. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree after all. It is amazing how we are so much alike yet we are so incredibly different. You said it was because of how amazing my mother is and how she did so right by us. I couldn't agree more!

Remember telling me about how much fun it was when all of us would stay with you. You had to promise to have us dressed and at church on time but it wasn't too hard. You had Rachael there to help you. You were always impressed with how much of a leader she was; down to earth, smart as a whip, and such a good leader. You never doubted she would grow up to be anything other then a doctor. Ryan, such a good brother. He could take all of us girls down at once yet when we would gang up on him he wouldn't even flinch. You knew he was going to grow up to be such a good husband and father. It takes a real man to hold back his own strength. You loved his wife Lisa too. Always praising her for being such a good wife to your nephew. Lori, you always saw as responsible and practical. You said she was a good sister for me to have so close because she keeps me in check. (I definitely agree). No hard feelings at all when you say you always thought of Francie as the prettiest. You remembered her as always having the most adorable face and the happiest spirit. She was always smiling and clueless of anything less then positive. Finally, you mentioned how much you missed of Francie and Natalie because they were the youngest. You just loved how much fun Natalie was. You felt like a kid all over again every time you saw her. You two were so hilarious at the restaurant we went to in the city when we came through to visit. She still thinks of you as being such a FUN uncle.

Because I know that your time was limited with us, I wasn't as initially shocked as I thought I should be. I thought I would have had more of a warning. The first thing I said to my dad when he called was "Dad, at least he didn't die of AIDS". To most people, that may seem odd. If you were here, you would have been proud of me. We all knew you have been living with AIDS for a long time. The worst part of the whole disease is the fact that the people you meant the most to, would have to watch you die. You wouldn't give into the disease though. You had such a zest for life that even a disease as powerful as yours couldn't win. Your doctors were so impressed with you too. As tragic as your death was/is, I am grateful that you didn't have to loose the battle. Even in death, you survived.

I will miss you more then anyone can possibly understand. You have been a window into my heritage and the information that you have shared with me is a treasure.

Less then a week before you died we talked about life and death. You said God must have a good reason for you to still be here with us. It was then that I told you that God is so generous that He gives us the opportunity to decide whether we will accept His gift of eternal life. I said He must be waiting for an answer from you. I truely believe your decision was made before the 4 days later when you were killed. I trust God and know that He respects our decisions. He was waiting for you Uncle Charlie. That's why you were still alive.


*Charlie died on March 3, 2008. He was inside his home with his beloved dog Baby when his house burnt to the ground.

PEOPLE BOOTS

Our new PEOPLE BOOTS:

Madeline, at the age of 3, was putzing around minding her own schedule. Definitely, she was not listening to my pleading voice.

"Come on, hurry up! Hurry up! get your barn boots on, and lets go" I kept telling her. No matter what I said or how I said it, she continued to be in her own world.

"Madeline! Get your barn boots on and come on!...blah blah blah... Are you hearing your mother? lets go!"

"Mom!" she finally said.

"What?!"

"They are not barn boots."

"Then what are they?"

"They are people boots!"

And we still call them people boots. People boots are the best all around shoe in our house. They go on easy, come off easy, and are easy to clean. Madeline gets a new pair every year and this year they happened to have my size on sale too!